Date:         Tue, 8 Jul 2003 22:30:43 -0700
Reply-To:     Bruce Ralphs <bar@ISLANDNET.COM>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         Bruce Ralphs <bar@ISLANDNET.COM>
Subject:      Re: any years / models we should avoid
In-Reply-To:  <3F0AE643.B7FFDA37@earthlink.net>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=US-ASCII; format=flowed

Just curious about this thread...what are the improvements intro'd in
late 85 that numerous people have eluded to.  I have a Jan 85 model.

Thanks, bruce
On Tuesday, July 8, 2003, at 08:41  AM, mark drillock wrote:

> I thought we were discussing VW vans, not just engines. I've owned
> dozens of VW vans from split windows to Syncros. Aircooled 1.5, 1.6,
> 1.7, 2.0, water cooled 1.6, 1.9, 2.1, diesel, turbo diesels, and more.
> I've taken 500+ mile trips more than 100 times on both aircooled Type
> IV
> engines and waterboxers for combined driving of over a half million
> miles on my VW vans. I am comfortable will all of them. I prefer 2.1
> waterboxer models if we are sticking to stock choices. The vehicle as a
> whole is BETTER for DRIVING. More power, better ride, better brakes,
> better heat, better A/C, power steering. The late 85 is almost as good
> as it has numerous improvements that were phased in during that model
> year. I am talking about which one is better to OWN, not which one do I
> find it easiest and cheapest to do engine work on. That would be the
> diesels, hands down.
>
> Mark
>
>
>
> David Brodbeck wrote:
>>
>> On Tue, 8 Jul 2003, mark drillock wrote:
>>
>>> They say ignorance is bliss so Stan must be in Nirvana. The
>>> watercooled
>>> are head and shoulders above the aircooled in many respects. Most
>>> aircooled Vanagons suffered expensive engine failures are much lower
>>> miles than waterboxer do. Plenty of exceptions I'm sure. The late 85
>>> to
>>> 87 are the best value for the money. I sold my first 86 at 285k
>>> miles,
>>> still running strong.
>>
>> I think we all tend to prefer the engines we're most comfortable
>> with.  If
>> I were going to get a gasoline Vanagon I'd be tempted by the aircooled
>> models just because there's less to go wrong.  That rat's nest of
>> cooling
>> hoses and fracture-prone plastic fittings in the Wasserboxer engine
>> bay
>> would haunt my dreams.
>>
>> I had a '75 bus with a Type IV aircooled engine, and my only quarrels
>> were
>> with the exhaust, the fuel injection system, and the lack of heat.
>> The
>> engine itself seemed pretty sturdy.  (The lack of heat was mostly
>> because
>> the heater boxes and flapper boxes were completely rotted out.)
>>
>> David Brodbeck, N8SRE
>> '82 Diesel Westfalia
>> '94 Honda Civic Si
>
>